I'm flying through the air when I feel my phone start to buzz. The momentary distraction is enough to throw off my timing, and I clip the edge of the billboard that I was going to teleport past. I hit supports, struts, ribs breaking on impact before I tumble forward, the rooftop rushing up to meet me-

A full body twitch at the pain sets me off course, but I just close my eyes and teleport straight up, so that I'm facing the sky. My phone buzzes as I rise, momentum bleeding off and phantom pain receding. That makes...five? Close to five near death experiences. Maybe I do need to start being more careful…

I start to fall, focus on that point on the rooftop that I'd seen so clearly a few seconds ago...stumble backwards as I land. Note to self; reorient in the air before coming to a stop. Even if I'm not moving that fast.

The thought has me laughing, because...holy crap.

My phone, though. Can't forget that...I pull at the tape holding my sweatshirt pockets closed, retrieve the phone...a missed call. Glory Girl. I take a deep breath, tug my mask up and try to slow my racing pulse as I call her back.

"Taylor? Thought you'd gone to bed or something."

"Nope." I'm grinning, can't really help it. "Sorry. I was just...distracted."

Movement, on the other end of the line. Rustling paper. "Wait, are you out in costume?"

"Kinda, yeah...wanted to see what the new Charms did…"

"You mean the bone-things?"

Oops. "Uh, well...I mean, don't they look like some kind of tacky good-luck charm that you'd find in a novelty store, or something?"

"...what sort of novelty stores have you been in, Taylor? Because I would love to know, so I can be sure to never visit."

Alright. So, not the best explanation. I should probably come up with something a little more convincing. But not right now, because holy crap. "I can fly now."

"You- wait. You can fly?"

"Sort of?" I let out another breathless laugh. "It's more, uh...falling, carefully?" She makes a questioning noise, and I rub at my face, move to lean on one of the struts holding up the billboard. "Okay, you know how my teleportation kills momentum?"

"Yeah, I do. It's disorienting as hell."

I guess it would be, if you had actual flight powers. "Well one of the new charms makes it so that the momentum carries through."

A moment of silence. "So when you say 'falling'..."

"I took a dive off the Medhall building downtown, and made it…" I'm not sure, actually. Where am I? "Well, I was up there for awhile. I think I was moving along Main, but I got turned around a couple of times."

She heaves a sigh, but when she speaks again I can hear a smile. "Not quite flight, but...it's pretty cool, isn't it?"

"It's amazing."

"Now I wish I was out there too." She scoffs. "Instead of being stuck making sure I'll have enough free time for next week."

That would explain the paper-sounds. "Weekend homework?"

"Dual credit." I don't think I've ever heard her sound so defeated. "I shouldn't have taken Trig on top of everything else. That's what I get for pushing the envelope."

I haven't been bothering much with my own schoolwork, for awhile. Considering my grades were already in the toilet. But now I feel kind of bad about it.

"It hasn't been particularly exciting out here." I've been out for almost an hour, now, and I haven't seen anything. Just thinking about the implications of that, puts a damper on my good mood. "Probably still worried about bombs."

"Even the bottom-feeders around here know crazy when they see it." There's dull thud, barely audible over the line...a textbook, I think. "Everybody's laying low, I'd bet. Waiting to see what the ABB does next."

Makes sense to me. I hum, and nod, reaching up to push my hood back and pull my mask off entirely. The air is particularly cool, after the layers. "So. You didn't call me just to complain about homework, right?"

"Is that not a valid reason?"

Is it? I...maybe. "I guess so...sorry. I probably shouldn't assume that something's going on, just because…"

"No, I get it. It's been a crazy couple weeks. But...yeah. I dunno, I'm bored, I need a distraction. My boyfriend is working late, all my friends are off distracted by their own stuff, and Amy's already gone to bed."

"Again, the fact that I seem to be the last name on your list-"

"Hey, I just had to cover my bases to make sure I was good to deal with your particular brand of weirdness. Dunno if anyone's ever told you this, but you can be kind of a pain to deal with sometimes."

I can hear her smiling. She means it as a joke...not even one at my expense. It still bites. Because for all that she keeps saying we should work together, that we're 'friends'...I haven't exactly been a great one, so far. "I'm...working on it." Not something I particularly want to dwell on though. Time to change the subject. "How's your sister doing?"

"Well, she's back home, which is good. She's also putting in just as much time at the hospital as before, which isn't." A long moment of quiet; I can almost hear the scratching of a pencil in the background, before it stops and the sounds shift. "She says she worked stuff out while she was gone, y'know? Except I don't think she did. Something's been bothering her, and it's gotten worse since...uh, the bank."

Okay, so that wasn't much of an improvement. I should probably work on my subject-changing skills. "Not sure what to say. Only child, you know?" I turn my mask around, lifting it up to reflect the fading light overhead. "...some things take time, right?"

"Right...yeah, I guess they do." An irritable huff. "Doesn't mean I have to like it."

True enough. I tilt the mask, feel it adjusting with the motion...smile, as I realize something. "Wait, are you pacing again?"

The vague noise that I'd finally identified as 'motion' stops. "Of course not!" A pause, more movement, and a scraping noise. Not sure what that is. "Are you spying on me?"

Spying...ah. Must have been a window. I bite my lip to keep from laughing again. "I'm nowhere near your house."

"Uh-huh." Doesn't sound like she believes me entirely. "I'm going to say I believe you, because the alternative is really creepy."

"A little bit, yeah."

"Please tell me that you're not actually-"

"I thought you said you were going to believe me?"

"Well I'm not so sure, now. I mean, you can see through walls, and teleport around...you can't really fault me, being a little paranoid."

I snort, and push away from the billboard. "No offense, but I've got better things to do with my night than spy on you doing schoolwork."

"Oh really? Like what?"

"...so, did you get in touch with the costume guy yet?"

She laughs. It's a successful change of subject, though. An easy topic. And after that...well, I'm not great at smalltalk, but I don't have to be. Victoria talks enough for the both of us; I can get by with the occasional agreement or comment.

I may have screwed up...a couple of times. But nothing that can't be recovered from. I'll just...be more considerate, in the future.

Easy.

xxxxxxxxxx

Victoria went back to her work, eventually, leaving me to...well, wander around some more. I don't really have a particular 'patrol route', at the moment...should that be something to change? Maybe I should just, I don't know. Pick an area? Focus my attention there, minimize the extra work? I doubt that this is the most efficient use of my time…

Then again, if I was completely focused on efficiency, I wouldn't have left my bat on the Medhall roof before I decided to try 'flying' tonight. Not to mention that my backtracking is probably a more effective 'patrol' than that headlong rush through downtown. I should probably feel bad about that, but...I can't, really. Because that had been exciting.

I could use a little of that excitement about now. You'd think that with things the way they are, it'd be easy to find someone doing something they weren't supposed to; not many law-abiding citizens willing to go on a casual stroll in the middle of the night with the gangs on the war path. But as I sweep over dead-end alleys and dark side-streets, the worst I turn up is a guy digging around in a dumpster, and a pair of dogs fighting over what I think had been a cat. Honestly, I don't get close enough to even try confirming that.

Boring is a good thing, right? It could just be that...all the criminals were taking the night off? That'd be great, really. Not particularly likely, no, but it'd still be...good.

Of course, as I stop to seriously consider just heading home and getting some actual sleep, three guys walk into my field of vision, just before the glow of my enhanced vision fades. The alley below is poorly lit, which is a little surprising considering the area...but it works for me. Because not only does it make it unlikely they'd spot me if I were to, say, move to that fire-escape they just passed-

-but it also reassures me that they're not just a group of idiots wandering home from a bar. I shift, carefully, testing my weight on the grating to make sure I'm not going to set the whole thing creaking if I have to move suddenly. Seems that's good...I take a breath, reach my recovery-count, and blink away the darkness.

They're just walking along, casual as could be. But I notice a pattern to the way they scan the alley around them. Not frightened. Wary, maybe, but they're also confident. Considering the haircuts, what little detail I can pick out from their clothes, and the fact that we're downtown...Empire-Eighty-Eight. Great.

I lean forward, careful with my bat as I draw a bit closer to the metal railing. Three (possible) gangsters walking down an alley...do I do something about it? From my talks with Victoria, it's usually better to be sure about who you're going after, but I'm not sure how I could…

Oh. Right.

I stand, slowly, look up to try and get an idea of where I'll go next. That particular rooftop seems like it's got a wider edge. I can work with that, even without direct line of sight. I consider the men for another second, then lift my bat and tap it against the rail, just hard enough to ring for a moment. One of them whirls almost immediately-

-and my proof comes in the form of a handgun, pulled from under his jacket. I frown, crouch on the edge of the roof as one of his buddies grabs his hand and says something. Harsh, low, I can't make it out from up here. That's a bit of a problem...there's a dumpster ahead of them. And it looks fairly dark, there...I step back onto the roof proper, pick up a couple pieces of gravel, and toss them over, back toward the alley's mouth. When I hear the clatter, I move again-

-setting the bat down as quietly as possible, behind the dumpster, before curling in on myself and pulling my hood low over my mask.

"-Christ, I'm tellin' you, man…"

"Will you shut up? You've been actin' jumpy all night. It's just the wind."

"How the fuck do youknow that? It could be a Cape, for all we know."

"I don't give a shit what it could be. Besides, what do you think a gun's gonna do if it was? Bring them down harder on you, jackass. Now put it away."

"Screw you, man-"

"Joe, just fucking listen to him, man. We're already late for this thing, we need to get a move on."

My vision goes out, and I refresh it in time to see them wander past, the guy with the gun struggling to get it holstered again. "Screw both of you guys."

"Whatever, man."

Nice bunch. I debate hitting them now; the guy with the gun seems pretty wrapped up in whatever issue he's having, and the other two would be nice and surprised by that...but then, they're apparently 'late' for something. And that something might be a little more important than three nobodies.

They continue down the alley, and I watch until they turn onto the street again. Stand, retrieve my bat, and slink along after them. After I'm sure which direction they're going, I hit the rooftops again. Follow from above. It's...really not that hard, since they're just walking.

And walking. And walking. And...no, wait, it looks like they're stopping, here. A parking structure...I frown, watch them walk down the entry ramp and out of sight...are they here for a vehicle? Maybe they're stealing something? No, that's stupid. They wouldn't go all that way for that, and I don't think you can be 'late' for a carjacking...so a meeting, maybe. I guess it makes sense. I mean, how much security can a place like that have, really?

I...don't actually know. But I have to assume it's 'not that much'.

After a few long moments where absolutely nothing happens, I step across the street-

-and onto the top level. Empty, poorly lit by lamps that mostly just flicker in off-yellow and cast some pretty weird shadows. A short wait and a moment to enhance my vision again, and I do a quick sweep of the area below me...a couple of figures, walking around nearby. One floating along...driving. Because it's a parking garage. I smother a smile at that particular image, But I can't see to the ground level, and definitely don't see my guys...I jog over to the opposite edge, hop it-

-and hit the ground in a crouch. Nailed that landing...I feel a surge of regret that I can record this stuff, because I bet it'd look pretty cool.

And...that's really not relevant, right now. Focus.

There are the Empire guys. And about five more, that must have been waiting, here. Not sure who they are...I blink away the false color and glow, but the lighting in the garage is just as much a hindrance in picking out detail asthat had been. All I can really tell is that they're all big guys with cropped hair and a fondness for turtleneck sweaters.

Which...I mean, I guess that's actually a fairly distinct thing. But still.

I can't really hear what they're saying; they're talking quietly enough that I only get a few echoes, when I actually lean up over the concrete barrier that separates 'inside' and 'outside'. Something about money, product...the Empire guys are buying something. Which would explain that package one of them is pulling from his jacket. One of the sweater-guys holds out a hand, and I catch a flash, something reflecting.

The package arcs up, sweater-guy catches it with his free hand, and tosses the flashy thing, and both groups circle around each other...the Empire guys moving toward a panel van parked in a nearby spot. The flash must have been a set of keys. So they are here for a car? Van? What…?

The sweater-guys are facing me, now, so I get a good view of their expressions as they pull their guns. One of the Empire thugs (the twitchy one from earlier) notices, where the others don't. He breaks to run, fear and confusion in his face for a moment before a pair of sharp cracks-

I tip back, pain in my face, my neck. And things are...kind of blurry…

I lose my balance, and slump forward against the barrier, sliding down the moment I recognize the scene playing out in front of me. Gunshots. Cries of surprise, anger, the wet thud of a body hitting the ground...I remember I need to breath, and force myself to actually do it. Reach up to feel my mask, solid, whole.

Twice in one night. I'm...I really need to take a step back and think about what the fuck I'm doing, lately.

But later, because right now there's a gunfight kicking off in there.

A maximum of six guys, probably all armed. And here's me, shaking from an adrenaline rush and the memory of dying, and armed with three feet of battered aluminum.

I'm...not going in there.

So, rats. Rats should work just fine.

I take a deep breath to try and calm myself a little more, close my eyes, and call up a swarm of them. On the ground around me, which is a nice change of pace...I'm quick to take control of them, slumping against the barrier to recover as I send them up and over. Past the barrier, past the twitching body lying in a quickly-spreading pool of blood...

More cries ring out. More surprise. I see blurry figures reorienting, hear more gunfire, and feel as bullets impact the floor, killing one rat just from the concussion of it...they leap at the closest of the men, and once I get a couple of them under that sweater to do their work, I split the rest off to take care of the others.

It doesn't take long. Five healthy men disarmed and distracted, the sixth bleeding and easily cowed by a rat sitting on his chest and screeching when he moves...my timing is nearly perfect, and I roll myself over the barricade, hit the floor in a low crouch as the rats disappear. Almost immediately, I've got more slipping out from beneath my sweatshirt. The added strain of taking control of them has me actually feeling it, but I push on anyway, sweeping the rats ahead of me to hit the guys again.

One guy looks at me, and I feel a shock go up my spine, from the row of Charms I've got strapped there. No time to wonder what that is, though, because he was quick enough to go for a weapon. I dive into a roll-

-and come up behind him. Out of sight again, I know that...my bat catches him in the shoulder, sending him reeling into the rats as they skitter across the floor. That's him down…

More gunfire, and I spin, redirect the rats even as I prepare to teleport away...one of the sweater-guys, face flushed and eyes wide as he fires indiscriminately at the approaching swarm. Silent and focused, until they hit him again, and then he lets out an undignified yelp and immediately drops the gun again in an attempt to shake off the ones that have clung onto him.

Sweater-guy numbers three and four have seen me, now. They watch me and, I note, the rats that I split off to take them, too. When I start circling them around, one of them turns to keep an eye on them, while the other keeps an eye on me.

That's...different.

"Surrender." I raise my voice, a bit. Both to cover up the slight unsteadiness, and to overcome the muffling effect of my mask. "It can definitely get worse."

Imagine my surprise when, after a few seconds of quiet, the guy folds his hands together behind his head and settles down on his knees. His buddy behind him glances around, sees him, and quickly does the same. So does the guy I'd tagged in the shoulder.

The one that my rats had caught isn't quite so composed, voice shaking as he curses. "Fucking get'em off me!"

I do. And he surrenders.

Which is...yeah. Okay. Why not?

I keep the rats on hand, consider them, then move over to the wounded Empire goon-

Five sets of eyes on me. And then a sixth. I spin, spot the third gangster circling around the side of the van, gun in hand. A step-

-and a swing knocks it away, and he bites out a curse before my backhanded follow-up swing catches him across the jaw and sends him to the ground.

Rats chirp and squeal as one of the sweater-guys gets ready to move. He gets the message, and settles again.

"Stay down."

The last guy glares up at me, then spits at my feet, chips of something hard hitting the concrete...oh. Shattered tooth. Or teeth. Still, he doesn't move, so I go back to his buddy.

His buddy who's bleeding pretty badly. Breathing shallow, too...shit. I lean over him, eye the wounded shoulder...I pull out my phone and speed-dial the emergency services line Victoria gave me...except I don't have a signal.

Okay. That's...that's just great…

Seven people watching me. Eight.

I take two steps to the side, without looking around-

-then move to the other side of the panel van, and skirt around it as my rats spread out…

"Shit, where'd he go-?"

...he?

"You, don't move. I see anyone go for a gun, we'll have problems…" A pause. "Aegis." Silence. I look past the van in time to see a figure hovering above the ground wave in my direction. And another, lifting up until he's almost brushing the ceiling…

Aegis. A Ward.

"Hold on!" I lift my bat, wave it for a second before stepping out. The red costume and silver shield are easily recognizable, even with the poor lighting. That's definitely Aegis...and judging by the flying skateboard and Tinker-tech pistols, Kid Win too. "Sorry. I thought you were more of them." A vague gesture at the guys scattered around...my rats vanish, again, and I wince at the sudden lack of input. "I've learned to dodge first and ask questions later."

Can't read much of their expressions, but I also can't miss the look they share as Aegis settles on the floor again. "That's fair…" A pause, as he eyes me. "You're...not a villain?"

I'm…? "What? No!" Okay, so...I guess I am dressed mostly in black. And the mask isn't as...sleek, as his helmet, or Kid Win's visor, but...villain? Really? "No, I'm a hero. I've been working with Glory Girl and everything."

"Uh...right…" He doesn't sound so sure.

Kid Win, on the other hand, turns to look at the guy that I'd hit in the face. He's still spitting out blood, and, as I watch, reaches into his mouth to yank out another tooth. Or part of one, maybe.

"I dunno, I think I can see the resemblance…"

What is that supposed to…? No, it doesn't matter. Wards, here, that's good. "Look, can introductions wait? This guy's hurt pretty bad." I move, draw their attention to the wounded gangster. "We need to call an ambulance or something…"

Aegis is at my side almost before I realize he'd moved, and I flinch away without thinking. But he just crouches down at the guy's side, hissing under his breath. "Kid, call it in. Six men, one injured-"

"Seven." I correct, waving toward where I know the last one is still lying. "One tried to run, took a bullet in the back. He's dead."

"Right. Kid, you heard her."

"Yeah, I heard…" Kid win turns away, and starts talking quietly...probably some kind of earpiece thing. That would make sense…

"Hey, I'm going to get him upright." Aegis is already pulling on the guy, getting behind him to prop him up. He's not really struggling...probably not a good sign. "You're going to help me put pressure on the wound, alright? You're just going to press."

Right. Slow the bleeding. "He's lost a lot of blood." I point out, as he tears a solid piece of the guy's shirt off with what looks like a casual tug. "Not sure this is going to do much good." I take the cloth anyway, and press it against the wound. Ignore the hiss of pain and slurred cursing.

"Well, it's better than nothing…"

"EMTs are on the way." Kid Win speaks up from where he's still watching over the sweater-guys. "The police should be here first, though."

"Alright. Get them cuffed and we'll wait it out."

"On it."

I keep up the pressure, watch with some interest as Kid Win starts pulling those plastic zip-cuffs from some kind of pack set into the armor at his waist. I narrow my eyes at the sweater-guys as he steps off his hoverboard, consider just how tired I am...Aegis flinches, but doesn't do more than that, as more rats swarm out of my sweatshirt. There's no rush this time; I just send them meandering over to the group, a silent reminder.

"Yeah, that's totally not villainous…" I frown behind my mask, but Kid Win just moves around the rats and starts securing the guys, guiding each one onto their stomachs and zipping their wrists together behind their backs.

Quiet, until he finishes with the...largely un-injured Empire goon. Even then, he just offers a 'going to wait outside' before taking off.

And then, awkward silence. It's interesting to watch Aegis trying to look everywhere except for at me. I just sigh. "Is it the rats?"

"Uh…" I can hear him cringing. "Maybe a little." A pause. "That's an...interesting mask."

"Thanks."

More silence. He shifts, uncomfortably. "You know...usually it's a good idea not to splurge on just one part of your costume…"

Oh, right. "The rest is in the works."

He seems a little surprised, at that. "Well...that's good."

And he stalls out again. This is getting ridiculous. But it's not like I have any conversation starters either, so I'm quiet. Watch blood well through...what is this? Cotton? T-shirts are usually some kind of cotton, aren't they? Whatever it is, it's uncomfortably warm and sticky against my hands.

"You said you work with Glory Girl?"

I glance up again. "Huh? Oh, yeah. Sort of." 'Work with'. I mean, she called it a partnership, a couple of times, so I guess it counts. "We've met up a few times."

"That's good." He nods. "New Capes can run into a lot of trouble, if they're not careful." I bristle at the implication, but considering some of what's happened lately I can't exactly argue it. "Have you considered the Wards?"

"Considered it." I really had. But honestly, the last thing I want is to hand over more control of my life to some stranger sitting behind a desk. Not to mention, "I'm not too sure about joining any club that would accept Shadow Stalker, either."

He winces, at that. "You've met her, huh?"

In a roundabout way. "Her reputation precedes her."

"Right." A pause, and he glances over at the guys in the cuffs. "Well...I'll be honest and say that Shadow Stalker...doesn't exactly fit in, with the rest of the Wards, here. She's not...you know. Representative." He smiles, but it seems a little forced. "You should really consider it. Having that support can make a huge difference."

I eye him, for a few seconds, then shake my head and focus on pressing that bloody cloth against the bleeding racist. "I'll keep it in mind."

"...okay."

More quiet. This time it lasts until the sound of approaching sirens signals the arrival of...I'm not sure if it's the police or the paramedics, actually. Do the sirens sound different? Probably...my question is answered less than a minute later when a pair of men come trotting in from the other side of the garage, a rolling gurney held between them.

I stand and move away when they tell me to...edge over to stand beside Aegis again, as the guy is bundled up and hauled out. The whole thing went...very quickly.

Well.

"Do you think you have this handled?"

He looks at me...surprised, again. Probably. "You're leaving?"

"It's pretty late." I shrug...pause. "Oh, yeah...the E88 were here trying to buy something from the other guys." I gesture at the van. "Might want to check that out."

A nod, another brief smile. "Thanks, uh…didn't catch your name."

He sounds embarrassed. I...don't really feel like explaining things. There's blood drying on my hands, right now. So I just shrug, and move-

-to the top level, already walking toward the closest edge. I'll hit the next roof over, then head down main until I…

Oh...crap.

I pause, and think. Scrape my heel along the asphalt irritably. Finally, turn around-

-and step past a startled Aegis, leaning down to pick up my bat.

"Hello again?"

He sounds so bemused. I ignore my burning cheeks, shoulder the bat, and offer a stilted wave before heading back up.

Smooth, Taylor. Very smooth.

"Fuck my life."

I'm going home.